Canadian Pension CEOs Call for Increased ESG Disclosure

The eight funds, which represent $1.23 trillion in assets, said it is ‘vital’ that companies report standardized ESG data.


The CEOs of eight of Canada’s largest pension plan investment managers, which have approximately C$1.6 trillion ($1.23 trillion) in assets under management (AUM), are calling on companies and investors to “measure and disclose their performance on material, industry-relevant ESG [environmental, social, and governance] factors” in order to bolster investment decisionmaking and help assess and manage risk exposure.

In a joint statement, the CEOs asked companies to use standards from the Sustainability Accounting Standards Board (SASB) and the Task Force on Climate-Related Financial Disclosures (TCFD) to further standardize ESG-related reporting.

The CEOs represent the Alberta Investment Management Corporation (AIMCo), British Columbia Investment Management Corporation (BCI), Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec (CDPQ), Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB), Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan (HOOPP), Ontario Municipal Employees Retirement System (OMERS), Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan (OTPP), and Public Sector Pension Investment Board (PSP Investments).

While SASB standards focus broadly on industry-relevant sustainability reporting, the TCFD framework calls for climate-specific disclosures across several reporting categories, such as governance, strategy, risk, and metrics and targets. The CEOs said both standards are useful to investors and informative to companies working to frame their ESG reporting.

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The signatories of the letter said they have also committed to strengthening ESG disclosures within their own organizations and will allocate capital to investments that they believe can deliver long-term sustainable value.

“How companies identify and address issues such as diversity and inclusion, human capital, board effectiveness, and climate change can significantly contribute to value creation or erosion,” the CEOs said in the letter. “Companies have an obligation to disclose their material business risks and opportunities to financial markets and should provide financially relevant, comparable, and decision-useful information.”

They added that “while we recognize companies face a myriad of disclosure frameworks and requests, it is vital that they report relevant ESG data in a standardized way.”

In the letter, the CEOs also noted the COVID-19 pandemic and widespread protests against systemic racism have brought to light long-standing inequalities concerning social inequity, environmental threats, and board effectiveness. They said companies and investment partners must to use “this historic opportunity” to drive change and create more inclusive economic growth.

“A strong commitment to environmental sustainability, diversity and inclusion, and good governance principles will not only make our economy and financial system more resilient, it’s also the right thing to do,” Tiff Macklem, governor of the Bank of Canada, said in a statement. “Leadership from Canada’s financial sector is essential as we focus on building an enduring and more equal economic recovery from the pandemic.”

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Pension Fund Sues Cigna over Failed Anthem Merger

Lawsuit alleges Cigna’s CEO tried to sabotage the $54 billion merger when he found out he wouldn’t lead the new company.


A Massachusetts pension fund is suing health insurance provider Cigna, claiming its executives and directors tried to sabotage a $54 billion takeover bid by Anthem Inc. out of their own self-interests.

The Massachusetts Laborers’ Annuity Fund accused Cigna CEO David Cordani and the company’s board of using “black-ops style” tactics in a “Trojan horse” campaign to thwart the merger with Anthem Inc. from the inside.

In 2015, Anthem proposed a plan to acquire Cigna for $54 billion, but, the following year, the US Justice Department sued to block the merger, saying it would lead to higher costs for employers and consumers. After the deal collapsed in 2017, Anthem contended that Cigna breached its obligations and sought damages of $21.1 billion. At the same time, Cigna argued that Anthem breached its obligations and sought damages of $14.7 billion, and separately sought to recover a $1.85 billion reverse termination fee.

According to court documents, Cordani was originally in favor of a deal with Anthem, but he is accused of changing his mind and trying to poison the merger deal when he found out he would not be the CEO of the combined company. Cigna had insisted Anthem pay a significant premium for the deal, which it agreed to do, but only if its CEO would serve as the new CEO of the combined companies.

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“The board supported his sabotage and placed Cordani’s personal interests over the best interests of the company” in order “to protect their jobs at the expense of stockholders,” says the unsealed lawsuit, according to Bloomberg News. “With the deal pending and the parties required to work cooperatively to gain regulatory approval, Cordani chose to poison the process to ensure the deal’s failure.”

The lawsuit also alleges “Cigna’s fiduciaries took pains to hide their disloyalty, such as making misleading public statements” and “proffering non-credible testimony.”

The pension fund also claims Cordani hired public relations firm Teneo, which it names as a defendant and says is “skilled in the darker arts of influencing the media,” to foil the merger while making it look like Cigna was trying to make it work. The fund is seeking unspecified damages to be returned to the company on behalf of all Cigna investors.

Cigna did not respond to requests for comment.

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